1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the invention generally relate to irrigation devices, and more particularly, to pop-up irrigation sprayers and sprinklers.
2. Description of the Related Art
Pop-up and pulsating irrigation pop-up sprayers and sprinklers, used primarily for irrigation of turf, have stems which are rigid and inflexible. These rigid stems are susceptible to breaking from outside forces that may be applied in the field, for example, when someone accidentally steps on or drives over the pop-up sprayer or sprinkler. The breaking of an individual pop-up spraying device can cause many problems, such as a large loss of water that escapes the irrigation system through the body of the broken pop-up spraying device. This large loss of water can causes localized flooding around the broken pop-up spraying device and generally wastes valuable water resources. In some irrigation systems containing the pulsating irrigation pop-up sprayers or sprinklers, the breakage of one pop-up spraying device can cause the remainder of the irrigation system to cease operation because of pressure drop in the water supply system.
In some pop-up spraying devices, at the beginning of each irrigation cycle, water flows into the body of the pop-up spraying device, causing the rigid stem to move up, and at the same time, water also flows through the spraying device, which is connected to the outlet of the stem. Therefore a high flow of water is often used to force each unit to a popped-up position. For this reason, traditional pop-up spraying devices are produced with a large inlet port having a diameter within a range from about 1.0 cm to 1.5 cm at the inlet to the body of the pop-up sprinkler device. Therefore, in an irrigation system with traditional pop-up spraying device, a large amount of water is wasted when the rigid stem breaks.
Therefore, a need exists for an irrigation pop-up sprayer or sprinkler having a flexible stem, which is more robust than traditional, rigid stems.